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GAUHATI: A government official in India says 18 people are dead after a bus fell into a deep gorge after being hit by hurtling boulders during a landslide in the mountainous northeast. Another 17 people are injured.

Arunachal Pradesh state Transport Minister Zoram Sangliana says the bus plunged about 45 meters into the gorge early Saturday near Keifang, a village 100 kilometres east of Aizawl, the state capital. Monsoon rains triggered the landslide in the region.

The injured have been taken to a nearby hospital, Sangliana told The Associated Press.

India has the world's deadliest roads, with more than 110,000 people killed every year. Most crashes are blamed on reckless driving, poorly maintained roads and aging vehicles.